


Silenced

by NYWCgirl



Category: MacGyver (TV 2016)
Genre: Aftermath of Torture, Angst, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Friendship, Gen, Rescue Missions, Team as Family, Trauma, injuries
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-28
Updated: 2019-04-28
Packaged: 2020-02-08 18:14:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,835
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18628597
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NYWCgirl/pseuds/NYWCgirl
Summary: Mac is finally found, but is he saved?





	Silenced

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is written to fill my ‘attacked by a creature’ square on my H/C Bingo card

‘Riley, sitrep.’

Jack waits and scans the building in front of him.

‘ _There are three faint heat signatures that haven´t moved_.’

Jack curses. Everybody on comms stay still, realizing what Riley said. This rescue mission probably just turned into a recover mission.

Jack takes a deep breathe, ‘Riley, guide us in.’

‘ _There is a staircase in the main hall, go down, second door on the left_.’

Jack and the tac team enter the building and make their way down. To their surprise, they find the second door on the left unlocked. The dread in Jack´s stomach increases. There is no way Mac would stay in an unlocked cell.

‘Riley? Any movement?’

‘ _None whatsoever._ ’

He carefully pushes the door open with his foot. The space is pitch black and there is no sound coming from inside.

‘Mac? Anybody? Is there anybody inside? Make yourself known!’

When there is no sound at all, flashlights are turned on and They enter the space. Jack has a weird sensation that all sound is absorbed by the space. The tac team members use their flashlights to check out the space while one of them tries to get the lights back on. Jack stops when one of the light beams flashes over bodies. One of them is curled up in a tight ball with its back towards them, but Jack would recognize Mac anywhere.

The moment of shock passes and Jack takes large steps across the room to kneel next to Mac. He extends a trembling hand to feel for a pulse. At first he doesn´t feel anything but then, barely noticeable, he finds a very slow pulse.

‘Mac?’ The relief is audible in his voice.

Suddenly the lights turn on, one of the agents must have been able to get the electricity working again and Jack lets out a noise of… of what, surprise? Disgust? Anger?

The two other bodies, agents that were with Mac when he was taken, are laying in almost the same position as Mac is in, only the team members who are checking them, shake their heads. The bodies are still warm, meaning they died recently. They are for the coroner, their attention now focuses on the only survivor.

‘Mac? It´s me Jack, you are safe now, we’ve got you.’

He tries to roll Mac over so he can have a look at him. Mac is strangely stiff, but together with another agent, Jack is able to get Mac on his back. Mac is covered in bloody welts, all over his abdomen, arms, legs and neck. Whatever creature attacked Mac was fierce.

‘Mac, come on, look at me.’

But Mac just stare blankly in front of him. It is eerie. Jack knows Mac´s thousand yard stare, but this is different, the star is totally blank, like nobody’s home.

‘Riley, we need a medic down here, STAT.’

‘Copy that Jack, they are on their way. How is Mac?’

‘Alive, but we need a medic. He will be fine, we’ve got him.’

It is only now that Jack notices the piece of paper on Mac´s shirt. It is pinned with a paperclip.

 

_Your boy was quite distressed. He screamed for you the entire time. We had to silence him, of course._

 

‘Oh kid, what did they do to you?’

Two Phoenix medics enter the basement, carrying a stretcher with them. While one of them opens the backpack they brought with them, the other one starts assessing Mac. Jack stays close, his worry increasing the longer Mac doesn´t respond or even moves. He keeps talking to Mac, trying to get a reaction.

An IV is started and the worse of his wounds are bandaged before he is lifted on the stretcher and carried back upstairs to the waiting ambulance.

Since they are Phoenix medics, they know better than to try and stop Jack from riding along. Mac doesn’t stir at all during the entire ride and by the time they arrive at Phoenix Jack is almost vibrating with tension.

Once inside, Jack gives the medical team their space to work. Mac is the most important thing right now.

It doesn´t take as long as Jack would have thought before the doctor approaches him.

‘How is he, doc?’

‘Well, he is relatively unharmed. The nurses are cleaning his wounds, none of them need stitches, but some of them are infected.’

‘What did do that to him?’

The way the doctor takes a deep breathe. In Jack´s experience, that is never a good sign.

‘They are self-inflicted, Jack’

‘What? No way. The kid would never harm himself in such a way.’

‘I´m sorry, but all evidence suggest he did.’

Jack needs to process this information. What could they have done to the kid to silence him that he would harm himself in such a way?

‘How is he now? Because he was unresponsive when we got him out of that basement.’

‘Well, this is not my field of expertise, so I called for a psych evaluation, but it appears Macgyver is catatonic.’

 

* * *

 

 

The whole team has gathered to hear the doctor´s verdict. They have seen Mac, visited him and the response was always the same, none, whatsoever.

‘OK, doctor, what was the psychiatrist´s diagnosis.’ Jack starts, always finding it quicker to grab the bull by the horns.

‘As you are aware, I asked doctor Gabriel for a psych consul and he came to the same conclusion, Mac is catatonic, he doesn´t respond to any external stimuli. We say the conditions in which he was kept and doctor Gabriel is almost certain Macgyver is experiencing a shock catatonic episode as a result of a reaction to something very traumatic, something he feared. You all know that people can respond in three ways to danger, fight, flee or freeze. Catatonia is like an excessive freeze response. Mac froze, think of it as a dear in your headlights, they stand still hoping you don´t see them.’

Everybody nods.

‘So, now what?’

‘Well, since Mac is in a stupor and doesn´t respond to anything, we won´t be able to let him eat or drink. We tried offering him food, but he doesn´t take any, so I ordered an IV to keep him hydrated and if this would continue, we would need to start a NG-line to give him nutrients.’

Doctor Gabriel enters the room.

‘Hi everybody, well, I have just seen Mac and he there isn´t any change in his condition.’

‘What do you suggest?’

‘Electroconvulsive therapy is by far the most effective treatment for catatonic depression.’

‘You want to shock Mac into sanity again?’

‘It isn´t one flew over the cuckoo´s nest, Jack. We will be attaching electrodes to Mac´s head that send electrical impulses to the brain, triggering a seizure. It is a safe and effective treatment, but I understand the stigma surrounding the treatment. The procedure is done under general anesthesia, so he won´t be aware of it.’

‘Isn´t there another way to treat Mac?’

‘We can give him benzodiazepines, in most people these medications are effective for quickly relieving catatonic symptoms. However, they are also highly addictive.’

‘Riley, Bozer, can you go and make sure Mac is not alone?’

It is clear to the two younger agents that they need to leave the room.

‘I don´t think Mac would want us to push addictive drugs,’ Jack starts.

‘I agree, so we agree to try ECT?’

‘What are the risks?’

‘Well me stress that ECT is generally safe, but side effects can always appear.’

‘Such as?

‘Confusion, if Mac wakes up, he may not know where he is. Rarely, it may last several days or longer, but we tend to see this side effect in older adults. Memory loss is another one, Some patients have trouble remembering events that occurred right before treatment or in the weeks or months before treatment. But for most people they usually improve within a couple of months after treatment ends. Which in Mac´s case is maybe not a bad thing. He may experience nausea, jaw pain, headache, which we can treat with medication.’

Jack and Matty both nod in silence. What is there to say? They need to get Mac back.

‘How long does the procedure take?’

‘About five to ten minutes. Of course there is added time for preparation and recovery. But we will closely monitor Mac afterwards.’

 

* *  *

 

‘Mac, come on hoss, this is the time to let us know you are in there, man! They are coming to take you and fry your brain. Please, come on, blink your eyes.’

Jack stared at Mac´s thousand yard stare, not making eye contact or acknowledging him. Jack shakes him but there is no response whatsoever. He lets out a big sigh and sits down.

Doctor Gabriel enters with a specialist he has called in to perform the procedure.

‘Jack, this doctor Williams, and he will be performing the procedure.’

 ‘Please call me Donald.’

Jack shakes the man´s hand, ‘Nice to meet you Donald.’

‘Daniel told me that he explained the procedure to you and that you signed the consent form.’

Jack nods.

‘OK, so I will give Macgyver a quick examination before we start. Daniel told me you want to stay here during the procedure and that the director approved this, so that is fine with me since this a non-invasive procedure.

The doc gives Mac a quick once over, but it is clear the diagnosis stands and he tells the others he will continue with the ECT. Since Mac is the only patient in the medical ward, they will perform the procedure right there. The machinery is brought in while a nurse checks the IV and then connects a new bag. Donald connects the electrode pads on Mac´s head. A mouth guard is inserted in Mac´s mouth before an oxygen mask is placed over his mouth and nose. Monitors to check his brain, heart, blood pressure and oxygen use are connected before Donald turns to Jack again.

‘OK Jack, I will push an anesthetic to make Mac unconscious and unaware of the procedure as well as a muscle relaxant to help minimize the seizure.’

Jack nods, the worry is evident in his face.

The nurse places a blood pressure cuff around Mac´s right ankle and inflates it.

‘Why are you taking his blood pressure in his foot?’

Donald smiles, ‘It stops the muscle relaxant medication from entering his foot and affecting the muscles there. When I start the procedure, I can monitor the seizure activity by watching the movement of his foot.’

The medication is pushed and Mac goes under. Once he has verified that the medication took hold, the doctor tells everybody to stand clear and pushes the button on the ECT machine.

The only thing that changes in Mac´s appearance is the rhythmic movement of Mac´s foot. However the monitor that registers Mac´s brain, shows a drastic increase in brain activity. As quickly as it started, it starts to level off, showing that the seizure is over.

‘Well, that was it, now we wait a couple of minutes for the effects of the anesthetic and muscle relaxant to wear off. We now monitor Mac, but he should be coming around any minute now.’

Jack takes a seat next to make and readies himself for the long haul.

 

* *  *

 

‘Mac? Mac, come on, breakfast has arrived.’

Jack pushes the button on the bed controls to raise the bed so Mac sits up. There is a definite improvement since they started the ECT treatment, but it is not what Jack had hoped. Mac didn´t miraculously wake up after that first session. There is improvement, sometimes he will make brief eye contact and he does eat and drink when told to. He doesn´t feed himself but he does open his mouth when Jack feeds him. But only with Jack, he doesn´t respond to any nurse or doctor.

Jack takes the pudding and starts feeding Mac, who opens his mouth when Jack tells him to. Staff doesn´t want to try sandwich yet, because they don´t want Mac to choke on a piece.

When the pudding is gone, he lets Mac drink out of the sippy cup. His heart aches when he sees Mac drink from it. Old Mac would have hated the sippy cup, but now it is the only way to get fluids into him without having to give him a complete change over afterwards.

‘Mac, Donald will be here soon for your ECT, OK?’

Mac´s eyes flick towards Jack for a moment, before the stare is back.

As planned, Donald enters the room and readies Mac. When it is over, Jack picks up the newspaper and starts reading out loud. He hopes his voice sooths Mac´s awaking by hearing a familiar voice.

But this time Mac wakes up, opening his eyes and looking directly at Jack. Jack immediately sees the difference.

‘Mac? Mac, are you with me?’

Mac just stares at Jack, but he blinks, that was the most eerie thing about Mac´s stupor, he didn´t even blink, and they had to put drops in his eyes to keep them from drying out. Jack is ecstatic, he jumps up, pushing the nurse’s call button and looking at Mac all at the same time.

‘What?’ Mac croaks?

Jack gives Mac a big smile.

‘You are really here.’

Mac just stares in confusion at Jack, it is clear he is disoriented and then the look in his eyes changes, to fear. Mac starts to try and get out of the bed.

‘Mac, you’re safe, you are in hospital.’

He takes Mac by the elbows, since he doesn´t want to hurt Mac, by holding his healing wrists.

‘Not real, not real, not real.’ Mac mumbles.

Mac starts to work himself up and becomes more agitated. He starts struggling against Jacks hold and Jack doesn´t want to hurt him, so he grabs him into a bear hug. But it only results in Mac starting to frantically rock himself.

‘Mac, it´s OK, I´ve got you, you are safe. Please don´t do this.’

But Mac doesn´t acknowledge Jack in any way, keeps mumbling and rocking. Soon a nurse enters the room, immediately paging Mac´s doctor. She readies a sedative and when the doctor enters the room, she hands it to him. Jack is still holding him so the doctor quickly injects the contents and Mac gradually slows the frenzied rocking and mumbling. Jack holds him until he goes limp, slowly stretching him back out in the bed.

‘What happened?’ he asks the doc.

‘Well, it appears our therapy is working and Mac came out of his stupor, so we will count that as a win, but it is not that Mac is cured. Whatever made Mac catatonic is not handled, so his symptoms improve, but we will need to prevent a recurrence, so I will adjust Mac´s medication. I would also like to decrease the frequency of his ECT´s, but want to start him on antidepressants. We should also start psychotherapy.’

Jack nods, it is not what he wanted to hear, but it makes sense that Mac wouldn´t miraculously bounce back from this, but he realizes this is going to take time and support from his whole family. He makes a mental note to call everybody.

‘Well Jack, you should rest yourself. Mac will be out from some time, so you might use it to rest yourself. Remember this is…’

‘… not a sprint, it’s a marathon.’

Donald smiles and pats Jack on the back before leaving the room.

Jack settles in the recliner next to Mac´s bed, closing his eyes.

 

* *  *

 

He doesn´t know what wakes him, but he stays still for a moment, letting his senses scan the room. When he is satisfied, he opens his eyes and scans the room. They are alone. Mac is still out. Jack gets up and walks into the bathroom to relief himself. He washes his hands and splashes some water in his face. He is getting too old for this. He quickly dries his hands and enters the room again only to stop dead in his tracks.

Pinned on Mac´s chest is another note.

He rushes over and pulls the note of Mac.

_He made a sound, so had to silence him again._

Jack immediately calls Riley, she needs to get into the hospital´s security system and find out who was in the room. The next call is to his tac team to gear up and provide security detail for Mac. They need to keep Mac safe and he needs to find whoever did this. He failed once again in keeping Mac safe, he isn´t going to fail again. They are going to take care of their boy.

 

 


End file.
